DigitEye India Fact Checkers
Following the release of the film ‘Chhava’ which shows Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj’s bravery and the cruelty of Mughal ruler Aurangzeb, some community leaders were up in arms opposing the film’s release, including Maulana Shahabuddin Rajvi of Barelvi community, who said the film was responsible for the recent communal violence in Nagpur.
Amid this controversy, a video is going viral on social media claiming that the Muslim community in the French capital, Paris, has protested the release of ‘Chhava’.
सेकुलर सुअरो
अब बोलो
क्या फ्रांस की राजधानी पेरिस में फिल्म ‘छावा’ के रिलीज होते ही जिहादियों ने नागपुर की तर्ज पर दंगे शुरू किए ?? pic.twitter.com/YGxe8XSL8Q
— Jitendra pratap singh (@jpsin1) March 21, 2025
The claim in Hindi says, “सेकुलर सुअरो, अब बोलो — क्या फ्रांस की राजधानी पेरिस में फिल्म ‘छावा’ के रिलीज होते ही जिहादियों ने नागपुर की तर्ज पर दंगे शुरू किए ??” Translated, it reads: “Secular Pigs, Now speak up! Did Jihadis start riots like Nagpur as soon as the movie ‘Chhava’ was released in Paris, the capital of France?”
In the video, some people wearing black clothes are seen attacking the police car parked on the road. While sharing the video, users claimed that the film ‘Chhava’ was behind Muslim riots in the French capital, Paris.
Many people have shared the video here and here.
FACT CHECK
After searching the video’s keyframes, we got the original X post pertaining to the incident, dated back to January 2021.
This tweet is of the French media institute ‘Actu 17’. It has been told that some people attacked the police in Pantin area of Paris. See the original post from X:
🇫🇷 Seine-Saint-Denis: Les Policiers Attaqués à Proximité du Tournage D’Un Clip De Rap à Pantin
►Les FONCTINAIRES on Sorti Leur Arme Pour Faire Recular Les Agresseurs, Un Homme A été Placé eN Garde à vue pic.twitter.com/du6ezx01bu– Actu17 (@actu17) January 25, 2021
The translation in English reads, “Seine-Saint-Denis: Police attacked near the filming of a rap video in Pantin. The officers drew their weapons to force the attackers to back down, and a man was taken into custody.”
On searching with the help of keywords, the results showed several news reports published in the French language about it. It has been told that this attack on the police took place on 24 January 2021. According to reports, this attack on the police took place when they were searching for a car. The attackers were reportedly shooting a rap video in this area.
It has been mentioned in the reports that the police had to use tear gas to quell the crowd. Four people were arrested by the police. Hence, it becomes clear that more than four-year-old video of France is being shared with false claims as protests against the release of ‘Chhava’ on 14 February, 2025.
Claim: Release of ‘Chhava’ led to riots in French capital Paris.
Conclusion: Misrepresentation. The video dates back to January 2021 riots in Paris and not when the film ‘Chhava’ was released on 14th February 2025.
Rating: Misrepresentation — 
